Ligue 1 McDonald's, Round 14, 07/12/24
After consecutive defeats, AS Monaco returned to victory against Toulouse FC (2-0) to keep up the pressure on Paris Saint-Germain, who dropped points earlier this weekend.
Without Folarin Balogun, who suffered another shoulder injury this week, Monaco were wasteful in the first half. Against a low block, Les Monégasques nevertheless managed to open up Toulouse's defense regularly, but failed to convert. George Ilenikhena hit the post early and beat Guillaume Restes with a chip that almost gave Monaco an early lead. He then hit the crossbar to shoot just wide before half-time, while Maghnes Akliouche also went close after bursting into the penalty area. The France youth international was guilty of waiting too long to release his effort, allowing defenders to recover and make the all-important block.
The deadlock was broken early in the second half by Wilfried Singo when he latched onto Lamine Camara's sharp free-kick at the back post. Toulouse did not push too hard in search of an equalizer, but did apply a period of pressure midway through half-time without overly testing Radoslaw Majecki in Monaco's goal.
Without forcing the issue, Monaco settled the encounter late in the match, with substitute Breel Embolo latching onto a deflected Akliouche ball and heading over the advancing Restes.
By closing the result Les Monégasques the gap with PSG to five points, and after successive defeats it is a timely return to form ahead of Wednesday's UEFA Champions League match against Arsenal.
Radoslaw Majecki – 5
Caio Henrique – 7
Thilo Kehrer – 5
Wilfried Singo – 7
Vanderson-6
Lamine Camara – 7
A tidy and combative performance topped off with a sublime assist. His excellent dead-ball display may be an underrated asset of his, but it has become a crucial arm in this Monaco attack.
Eliot Matazo – 4
Coming into the starting line-up just minutes before kick-off, it was not an easy situation for the youth player, who has not achieved much this season. It was a far from perfect performance from the midfielder, who offered too few options in possession and was too limited in his use of the ball, but was combative out of possession and ensured that he was not passed. In context it was a satisfying performance.
Aleksandr Golovin – 7
Takumi Minamino – 5
Maghnes Akliouche – 4
George Ilenikhena – 3
With Breel Embolo having been inefficient in recent weeks, Ilenikhena was brought in to score the goals. He didn't. He missed three big chances in the first half and showed a lack of composure and accuracy before coming on just after the hour mark.
Charlie Cresswell – 6
A strong performance from the Englishman who contained Ilenikhena in the first half and made a crucial last-ditch tackle to deny Akliouche. That was him. however, was muscled late by Embolo for Monaco's second place.
Joshua King – 4
GFFN | Luke Entwistle
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